Juan Román Gallego , managing director of the Andalusia Aerospace Business Cluster , and Mélanie Durth , head of innovation, have visited the Higher Technical School of Engineering (ETSI) to provide teachers and students with data and information on the Andalusian aerospace sector and its companies. , strategy, challenges and opportunities. In this event organized by EUROAVIA Sevilla with the help of the ETSI, both have presented and detailed the different topics in a presentation that has been very interesting for all attendees.

The aerospace industry in Andalusia has a long century-long history, entering the top 5 aerospace regions in Europe. Its beginning dates back to 1927, with the creation of a factory of the national company Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA). The appearance of CASA made the sector gain great importance, designing the first Spanish aircraft. In 1999, EADS (European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company, currently Airbus SE) absorbed CASA, thus becoming part of the European conglomerate. The most important milestone for the region since that moment is the election of Seville as the headquarters of the A400M FAL. There was an urgent need to promote the union of companies in the area, in order to give power to the Andalusia brand, as well as generate synergies and opportunities between companies, which is why in 2017 the Andalucía Aerospace business cluster was created.

The Andalusian aerospace fabric has a census of 140 companies, of which 103 are in Seville, 22 in Cádiz and 11 in Málaga. In general, the Andalusian aerospace sector is characterized by small and medium-sized companies, about 70% of the industry are SMEs, that is, they have less than 250 jobs and their turnover is below 50 million euros.

The total turnover of the sector in 2022 was more than 2.3 billion euros. The pandemic in 2020 caused the inertia of sustained growth to be lost. In 2019, the figure almost exceeded 3 billion. However, the pace of recovery is being faster than expected. Andalusia represents 39% of national aerospace exports. Almost 50% of these exports go to Germany and France, the great aerospace hubs of Europe.

One of the strengths of Andalusia is the level of infrastructure, hosting three aerospace parks: Aerópolis in Seville, the Bahía de Cádiz Center and the Andalusia Technology Park in Málaga. It is worth mentioning the reference technological center for the Andalusian sector, FADA-CATEC. Other infrastructures are the ATLAS experimental flight centers in Jaén and the future CEUS in Huelva, planned for next year and which will be the largest drone experimentation test center in Europe.

Institutional supports include TRADE, a public company of the Government of Andalusia that promotes the internationalization of Andalusian companies and the attraction of foreign investment; and Invest in Andalucía, an initiative of the Andalusian Government to promote, attract and consolidate foreign investment in the region. The support of universities is fundamental, both in the field of research projects and doctorates, and when it comes to giving visibility to the sector to students.

The strength of the sector is great due to the privileged situation in which we find ourselves, with powerful companies not only in Andalusia, but also in nearby regions such as Portugal, Morocco and other areas of Spain. Furthermore, the choice of Seville as the headquarters of the Spanish Space Agency enhances the attractiveness of locating space companies in the region.

The Andalucía Aerospace cluster is made up of more than 90 companies, fostering cooperation between them, promoting the growth of the aerospace sector in our community at a national and international level and increasing the competitiveness of companies through sustainable technological development. To this end, meetings and conferences are held between the companies, the Andalucía Aerospace brand is taken around the world by attending international fairs, and the participation of companies in R&D&I projects is promoted.

The Andalusian region, in addition to the three Airbus aircraft assembly plants in Seville and Cádiz, has pilot training schools such as Pegasus Aero Group in Córdoba or FTEJerez in Jerez de la Frontera, as well as an MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Review) such as Ryanair's maintenance center in Seville, where its southern European aircraft are repaired.

It is important to have the new driving programs in the sector on the horizon. The two main European projects currently are the FCAS (Future Combat Air System) and the Eurodrone, both with Spanish participation. The Andalusian industry is well positioned to participate in these programs.

After the speakers' intervention, a question period was opened. These have focused mainly on possible synergies between companies and the university, with the aim of improving student training.